Pectoral
by Ridley Silverlake
Summary: 05. Charlie Brown: With a handful of cartoon references, Koko finds it pretty easy to cheer Sumire up.
1. The Scientist

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Gakuen Alice. [:

_Pectoral_ is a collection of drabbles and oneshots with titles identical to Coldplay song titles. The plots don't all have the same meaning or contents as the songs the titles were taken from, so let's put the confusion aside. [:

01. Hotaru works in her lab, annoyed at Ruka who is endlessly asking her questions. But will she manage to hide a smile when he charms her with words?

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><p><strong>Pectoral<br>First Tune: The Scientist**

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><p>"Do you ever consider yourself a scientist?" Ruka asked, walking around Hotaru's lab. "I mean, you're smart, you have a lab, you invent stuff…"<p>

"No," Hotaru answered.

"What are you doing?" Ruka asked again, ignoring his being ignored.

"Repairing my duck scooter," Hotaru replied. "I accidentally ran into Amanatsu with it," she continued, wiping her forehead with the back of her glove. "Which reminds me, I have to fix her as well."

"What's this?" Ruka asked, picking up an item from Hotaru's desk.

"What's with all your questions?" She asked back.

Ruka stayed silent.

"It's ammo for my baka gun," she finally answered. "Don't you recognize it? It hits Mikan on the head practically everyday," Hotaru continued, not looking up from what she was working on.

"Nah," Ruka put it back where he found it. "I'm always too busy looking at the attacker to be paying any attention to her victim."

"Shut up," Hotaru turned away to hide her small smile.

**End.**

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><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>This is actually the fourth Coldplay drabble I've made. The first three (_Shiver, Strawberry Swing, _and _Speed of Sound_) can be found in the **Troller Skates **account—a fanfiction account which is a collaboration of different authors. Do take a look at our works. [:

Reviews? [:

_Ridley Silverlake_


	2. The World Turned Upside Down

02. One summer night plus fire and fireflies. Who said only opposites attract?

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><p><strong>Pectoral<strong>

**Second Tune: The World Turned Upside Down**

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><p>"Have you seen Mikan?" Hotaru approached the boy sitting on the branch of a tree.<p>

"No," he replied flatly.

"She's probably stuffing her face with Howalons right now," Hotaru scratched her head, walking closer to the tree. "Mind if I sit down?" Without waiting for an answer, she took a seat under the tree, not caring if her shorts got damp from the moist grass.

It was a warm, yet breezy, summer night. Silence surrounded the two, both waiting for something else other than the crickets to fill their ears with sound.

"What are you doing here?" He asked coldly. "Don't you have your silly contraptions to work on?"

"I'm finished working for today," she replied. "Though I think you should be speaking for yourself. Don't you think you should socialize more? Go back to the dorm and talk to people, why don't you?"

"You're one to talk," he argued.

"At least I have more than one friend."

"Yea, you have that idiot little girl and the robot that looks like her."

"Shut up," she said loud enough for him to do as told, but calm enough to not seem too angry.

And so he did. Silence surrounded them once again, with only the crickets and distant voices coming from the buildings.

Hotaru sat there, with her arms wrapped around her knees. It was quiet, yet she felt comfortable; and she had no idea why. She looked up at him and noticed his eyes were closed. Asleep or not, it gave her a chance to take a good look at him. There was something that made her feel secure. What it was, she couldn't tell.

She looked away from him, and to the night sky. The stars were bright and fireflies surrounded the tree. The warmth of the night got to her, causing her to look at him once more. His eyes remained shut as she looked harder at him. Suddenly, it felt like she didn't know this boy at all. She hated him, and she knew he couldn't stand her either; but looking at things three hundred and sixty-five degrees around, there was more to him than she thought there was.

The question was raised once again. She wondered why she felt complete; why she was seeing something she'd never seen before. Still looking at him, she asked herself in a whisper, "Why?"

Slowly, he opened his eyes, looking deep into her amethyst orbs with his tantalizing ruby ones and said, "I wonder the same thing about you."

**End.**

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><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>My first attempt at writing NxH, a pairing I don't even come close to liking. I'm not ashamed to say I failed at making it anywhere close to likeable. I tried because the next Coldplay song on my playlist was _The World Turned Upside Down, _which is exactly when I think I'm actually going to like NxH—when the world turns upside down.

And yes, I meant 365 degrees, not 360. Listen to the song, why don't you? [:

I forgot to explain in the previous chapter why entitled my drabble collection _Pectoral._ It's because before Guy Berryman and Will Champion joined the band, Chris Martin and Johnny Buckland formed a band called _Pectoralz._ When Will Champion completed the band line-up, that's when they were named _Coldplay._

That was probably too much useless information for you, but I wanted to let you all know why I used that title. :P I was going to entitle it _Pectoralz_, but I just wasn't feeling the letter Z. ((:

Gah~ I write too much in the A/N.

Reviews? [:

_Ridley Silverlake_


	3. Lovers in Japan

03. Mikan is upset about the never-ending rain, but Koko manages to cheer her up after having succeeded to get into her head.

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><p><strong>Pectoral<br>Third Tune: Lovers In Japan**

"When is this rain going to stop?" Mikan complained. It had been pouring outside for over a week and Mikan was tired of staying indoors. "I don't even know what to do here."

"You don't know what to do?" Koko raised an eyebrow, "Or are you too shy to tell me what you really wanna do?" He winked.

Mikan blushed, "You have no idea how glad I am that you can't read my mind."

"I was talking about getting Howalons delivered here, but if _that__'__s_ what you were thinking, I honestly don't mind," Koko chuckled. Seconds later, he found a pillow flying, instantly hitting him straight on the face.

He was about to react, but before he could even take any air in, he noticed her staring out the window intently. Her eyes filled with hope for the sun to finally reveal itself again. Silence fell upon them.

"He stared dreamily at she who did so at the trees outside," Koko muttered to himself and smiled. He sat beside her and looked out the window like she did.

"One day, we'll both sit outside a café, talking about things that make us happy," Koko said, leaning back after receiving a confused look from the brunette. "We'll be out of the academy and we'll be traveling around the country. We'll go see the Tokyo Tower, and we'll visit Kyoto," he continued as she raised her eyebrows. "Then we'll be in Osaka. Watching the sunrise _and_ the sunset."

"How…?" Mikan wondered, still so confused that she could hardly ask him a proper question of how he knew what she'd been thinking.

"Caught you off guard, didn't I?" He grinned at her. "When your mind drifts away, it gives me the chance to read your mind." He walked back to the couch. "It happens more than you think." He turned around to smile at her, and caught her blushing.

And another pillow came flying at him yet again.

**End.**

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><p><strong>Author<strong>**'****s ****Notes:** Overflowing with sappy cheesiness. Oh look, how repetitive of me.

Reviews?

Yes, apparently I am a fan of KokoMikan. Here's to hoping that you are, too. Cheers.

_Ridley Silverlake_


	4. Hurts Like Heaven

04._ Her heart is her weapon, and it hurts like heaven._

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><p><strong>Pectoral<br>Fourth Tune: Hurts Like Heaven**

I love her smile. I love her hair. I love how she greets me every morning. I love her laugh. I love how she asks me if I want to come to Central Town with her. I love her warm personality.

I love her.

I get so nervous around her, but at the same time, I feel like I can be myself. It's comforting to be around her.

But she belongs to him—to my best friend. She belongs to Natsume.

I hold no negative feelings against them; but I can't help but feel like she's the missing piece I need; and that without her, everything else is left lifeless and cold.

I try to hate her goofy smile. I try to hate how she's such a child for wearing pigtails. I try to get annoyed by her annoying "good morning"s. I try to want to shield myself from her high-pitched laugh. I try to feel irritated whenever she asks me to go places with her. I try to hate her hopeless optimism. I try not to like her too much.

But I can't. I fail at trying, because I don't feel any of those. What I feel is heavenly pain. Yes, pain that hurts me, yet the source of it makes me feel warm inside at the same time. The pain leaves all the pieces of me cold and lifeless, yet still completes this complicated puzzle, and makes me feel like myself.

She's happy and I guess that should make me happy as well.

When I see her, she hits me with everything she's got, without even trying. And that just makes me nervous, and scared that I might fall for her even more; making things worse on my side of the scale.

Her heart is her weapon, and it hurts like heaven.

**End.**

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><p><strong>Author<strong>**'****s ****Notes:** This is what I call extremely uninspired. Maybe I should do Bruce Springsteen for my next drabble collection. That'd get me full of inspiration, methinks. But I feel that I should finish Coldplay first.

Why am I even having such a dilemma?

Anyway, last line is disclaimed. Taken from the song.

Reviews?

Much love, _Ridley__ Silverlake_


	5. Charlie Brown

05. With a handful of cartoon references, Koko finds it pretty easy to cheer Sumire up.

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><p><strong>Pectoral<br>Fifth Tune: Charlie Brown**

****A oneshot dedicated to this awesome girl I call Sally Brown (pen name: Death's Servant) who I couldn't stop thinking about the whole time I was writing. :D

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><p>"What's up, kelpy?" A deep, concerned voice broke Sumire's peace. Its owner slowly walked towards her, waiting for her to scoot over to the side of the bench as a gesture of welcoming him to sit beside her. When she finally did, he didn't hesitate to make himself comfortable.<p>

"Natsume told me what happened," he said not long after leaning his back on the wooden seat, taking in the good view of an endless landscape in front of them, and the distant sounds of children having fun on their weekend in the park.

"I don't want to talk about it, Koko," she sighed, "I just want to be alone right now."

"You've been alone for three days. I gave you enough time," he attempted to say with an angry tone. "As your best friend, I know you enough to say you can't be alone for this long."

When Sumire didn't reply, Koko got up on his feet and stood directly in front of her with his hands on his hips, as if he was an angry parent, about to scold her. "Have you seen Wizard of Oz?" He asked.

"What?" Sumire looked at him, surprised at his sudden question.

"Have you seen Wizard of Oz?" Koko repeated, slowly, pausing a little in between words.

With eyes narrowed and eyebrows curled, she nodded.

"Then you know about the scarecrow not having a heart," he said, and started to march in place, which he hoped Sumire would interpret as him walking down a yellow brick road. "That's what Natsume is. He's capable of loving, but just doesn't know it yet, because he hasn't found his heart yet."

"That was the tin man, stupid," Sumire shook her head in embarrassment.

"Oh," Koko stopped in his tracks. "Then he's the tin man."

"Not possible. He has Sakura, and apparently, he has feelings for her," she said, burying her face in her hands.

"Well," Koko crossed his arms and looked up at the sky, hoping the clouds would shoot ideas through his yellow locks.

"Have you ever heard of cartoon physics?" He asked.

"Cartoon physics?" Sumire repeated with a raised brow, as if it had been the most aburd branch of science she'd ever heard of.

"You know how when Samity Sam runs after Bugs Bunny, he runs to the end of the cliff and stops in midair? Then he falls only when he realizes he isn't standing on anything solid?" He explains.

Sumire simply nodded, keeping her eyebrow raised.

"Then maybe that's what's happening to Natsume. He's just not aware of the fact that he's falling for you," Koko remained standing across the bench, trying his best to think of mental crap to feed his best friend. "He's there, but he hasn't realized it yet."

"You have really crappy logic, you know that?" Sumire shook her head and fiddled with her damp handkerchief.

"How about fairies?" Koko held his thumb and index finger about three inches apart, as if he held an invisible fairy in between them.

Sumire hesitated, but managed to ask, "What about them?"

"Do you believe in them?"

Sumire shrugged.

"How about love?" He asked again.

"What about it?"

"Do you believe in it?"

"Who knows?" She rested her chin on her hands, and and leaned forward so her elbows balanced on her knees.

"Ah, I see your problem, my dear Peppermint Patty," Koko grinned. "The light of a fairy dies out every time someone doubts its existence," he picked a couple of flowers from the ground, "in order for love to light up in you, you've got to believe and have faith in it first." He smiled, holding up a pink and a purple flower directly in front of Sumire's face.

"Stop being stupid, Koko" Sumire slapped the flowers off Koko's hand.

Koko pouted.

"If you can give me something logical, that makes sense, and has exactly zero cartoon references, then please, by all means, share it." She held her arms open, welcoming those imaginary logical thoughts. "Otherwise," she dropped her arms to her sides, "just sit and keep your mouth shut, because I have no time for foolishness."

"Oh," Sumire started again, before returning to her peace, "but please feel free to keep calling me Peppermint Patty," she said sarcastically. "Although I think Woodstock might be a little more appropriate if you're going to keep making me feel this useless."

Koko frowned. His shoulders dropped as he walked to the bench, occupied the empty space beside Sumire, and kept silent. His hand was busy playing with the lint inside his pocket, and his eyes stared blankly into the sky.

Minutes later, Sumire spoke up. "I just want to talk to someone."

Koko kept his mouth shut, not wanting to disobey his friend.

Silence fell once more. Soon, Sumire spoke up again.

"I want to talk to someone who's felt as stupid as I'm feeling right now, because they've tried to do everything they thought would've made the person they love happy." Tears started to fall from her eyes. "I want to talk to someone who understands what it's like to have done that to feel loved, but instead was thought of as a fool."

Koko turned to her.

Sumire looked at him. The tears stopped coming the moment she realized what her best friend tried to imply.

As the sun set, and the two flowers sadly sat at their feet, Koko's eyes held multiple emotions at once, offering a comforting look to Sumire, with his arms open wide.

It was now clear to her. He understood her perfectly.

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><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong> This was inspired by, not only Coldplay's song, but also a _Peanuts_ strip from October 16, 1981. If you want to see it, just google "Peanuts 10/16/81", click on the first result, and scroll down to number five. :D

Oh, and I do not own these characters.

Sumire and Koko (c) Higuchi Tachibana  
>Tin man and Scarecrow (c) Oz books(?)<br>Sammity Sam and Bugs Bunny (c) Looney Toons  
>Peppermint Patty, Woodstock and Charlie Brown (c) Charles Schulz<p> 


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